


what if we worked at rival drugstores (and we were both girls)

by 264feet



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, New Dangan Ronpa V3: Everyone's New Semester of Killing
Genre: Alternate Universe - Convenience Store, Cuddling & Snuggling, F/F, Gratuitous piano, Lesbian Akamatsu Kaede, Lesbian Character, Loneliness, Pining, Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-23
Updated: 2020-10-23
Packaged: 2021-03-09 06:00:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,077
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27168991
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/264feet/pseuds/264feet
Summary: Kaede sees a beautiful stranger taking her break at 53rd Drug, a store across the street.
Relationships: Akamatsu Kaede/Harukawa Maki
Comments: 13
Kudos: 45





	what if we worked at rival drugstores (and we were both girls)

**Author's Note:**

> inspired by the sexual tension of the cvs and walmart that are on opposite corners near my house.
> 
> cw: attempted abduction which is stopped by another character.

The automatic doors open with a familiar jingle. Kaede recites the notes in her head while she strolls from the air-conditioned store interior into the city’s smog. She usually likes looking up at the sky on her lunch breaks- all she gets when she looks up in HPA Drug are fluorescent lights- but the perpetual smoke and overcast have rendered it a dull gray. 

The Sun must be out there somewhere, but who can see it? Who can feel its warmth? Even if it were shining, she spent most of her day locked in her day job at HPA Drug. And yes, mom, it is different from being locked in all day playing piano. 

If she could get a job as a musician, things would be different. But these days… 

_Gymnopedie No. 1_ plays in her head. Okay, enough being a sad sack, Kaede. You only have a single 30-minute break. Might as well make the most of it. 

She sits on the bench outside the automatic doors and sets her store-bought lunchbox (with a 20% discount, wow!) on her lap. Some workplaces would think its unprofessional for her to eat right in front of the store, instead shooing her to a coffin of a break room, but this is her best chance to indulge in some people watching. 

Kaede struggles with The Public sometimes, as rude as they can be while she’s working, but she likes people. People can have whole symphonies in their hearts, just waiting to be discovered. She switches from Japanese in her mind to another language, one written on the staff. 

The kids running down the street, just getting out of school, laugh in notes of E minor. A salaryman yells into his phone, staccato blows of G minor. She would get a clearer picture of their songs if she got to spend more time with them, but for now, all she hears are snippets of their melodies. 

It’s nice. She doesn’t hear just idle chatter and sounds of the city, but so much more. She gets a few notes from everyone that blend into a type of harmony that keeps her going through these rough days. She almost forgets to eat her lunch, she’s so caught up in it. 

And then, at the rival drug store across the street- 53rd Drug- someone walks out the doors who simultaneously slams all the keys on the figurative piano. 

Her eyes, a piercing red-- A♭ Major. Her hair, shaken free from the uniform cap, flows down her back in two twintails-- B♭ Major. Deep black shadows trail behind her while passersby near her barely cast one at all. Light notes dance with dark ones in a song that clearly has a tune, but one that Kaede cant comprehend. 

Kaede drops her chopsticks on the ground. She doesn’t plan on eating, anyway. 

_Waltz Op. 34. No. 1_ plays in her head as she runs across the street, just barely catching the light on a crosswalk. The girl sips something out of a black thermos. 

“Hey!” Kaede says. It hits her immediately that she has no plan. “Do you, um, work here?”

The girl glances at her own uniform. “Obviously.” 

Everything’s going great. Keep it up, Kaede.

“You’re pretty,” she blurts out. Shit. “I- I’m Kaede Akamatsu. I work at HPA Drug- you know, across the street. What’s your name?”

If nothing else, it makes the dark girl snicker. It’s not a full on laugh, but it’s a nice sound-- a gentle few chords that lighten her song. “You can call me Maki.” 

“Maki! Got it!” she says, pumping her fists. She already knows her name! And it’s so cute, too! “How long have you been working here?”

With every answer, Maki purses her lips and thinks before replying. She’s all too deliberate. It’s mysterious. Kaede likes it.

“Since I was 15. That’s the youngest they would hire me,” Maki says. It’s as if she was urgent to get hired all those years ago. Kaede notes that Maki seems to be the same age as her now. “I’m saving up.”

“For?”

“... College, maybe, someday. Who knows.” Those red eyes pierce right through Kaede. “You’re awfully pushy, aren’t you? Talk about yourself a bit.”

Some might take it as dismissive, but Kaede jumps at the invitation. “I graduated as a music major! I’m totally obsessed with piano. Everyone calls me ‘piano idiot’ because it’s all I ever think about.”

“So you failed, and now you’re here.” 

“Working at HPA is a temporary setback!” Kaede refuses to let herself get bogged down in negativity. “A few other friends invited me to work here while I’m searching for something else.” 

Maki opts to ignore her and drink from her thermos. They stand under the drug store’s awning as raindrops start to fall from the grey sky. 

“Have you ever heard Chopin’s _Raindrop, Prelude Op. 28?_ ” 

“No.”

Undeterred, Kaede speaks on. “It’s one of my favorites. It’s one of the longest of the preludes. The repeating A♭ key sounds like raindrops,” she says. “Isn’t that lovely? You can express so much with music.” 

“Fascinating,” Maki says, in a way that betrays she doesn’t find it fascinating at all. 

Maki doesn’t like her. Maki probably thinks she’s annoying. And worst of all, she works at a rival drug store. She might as well be a Capulet, Kaede a Montague. 

But Kaede’s never been one to give up a challenge. And, maybe she just likes someone who bites back a bit, but she’s having fun talking to Maki.

“What do you do in your free time, Maki?”

“I don’t have any.” 

“I know, right?” Kaede laughs. “Same here! I keep a piano app on my phone so I don’t go too crazy, and my manager lets me listen to music while I’m cleaning the store after hours, but I don’t get to play nearly as much as I want to!” 

Maki is studying her. Kaede squirms under the scrutiny of her piercing gaze. 

“Okay.” Maki pulls out a battered old phone and checks the time. “My break is up soon. I should go.” 

“What time do you get out of work tonight?” Kaede asks. “Do you need someone to walk with you to the train?” 

‘No’. Kaede expects it. She doesn’t want to be creepy, so if Maki really hates her that much, she’ll let her go. Reluctantly. 

Instead, a shadow of a smile appears on Maki’s lips. “I can take care of myself. But, I’ll leave at 22:00. Don’t make me wait or I’ll leave without you.” 

“Perfect, I get out at the same time!” Kaede wants to jump for joy. Unfortunately, she played piano through breakfast and now has talked through lunch. Her stomach growls at the worst possible time.

“Tch. You’ll be starving by then,” Maki says. “You didn’t eat lunch. You dropped it.”

“You saw that?” Kaede pulls her arms close to herself, embarrassed. 

“I notice things that others don't. Their senses are dulled.” Maki bites her bottom lip, thinking. “Here. Take a drink of this. It’s a special protein shake formulation. It will keep you full.” 

“Are you sure?” 

Maki has already shoved the thermos in her hands. Kaede takes a long sip. It’s a thick protein shake that probably has a flavor of some kind. All Kaede can taste is Maki’s chapstick on the rim. 

Kaede doesn’t have a chance to thank her before a strange older man wearing a 53rd Drug uniform barks for Maki to come back inside. Maki runs in, waving Kaede off when she tries to return the thermos. 

And so Kaede stands, listening to nothing but the A♭ splashing against the concrete and her heart pounding in her ears. 

* * *

“So, I think we’re going to move in together,” Kaede says, still holding the thermos in both hands. 

“That’s just plain great!” Tsumugi, her co-worker, says. “Want me to call movers to help with your piano?”

She and Tsumugi were roommates in college and Tsumugi had been the one to invite Kaede here until they both find better jobs. They had a brief relationship (because, come on, they were _roommates_ ), but wound up ending it amicably before graduation. 

“Soon, probably. I think--”

A customer approaches the front desk with her items. As if a doll switched settings, Kaede enters customer service mode. Kaede puts on her plastic smile as she rings up the items and bags them. She bows as the customer walks out of the store. 

A green mop of hair pops out from the store shelves. Rantaro pulls out an earbud. “What’s this I’m hearing about moving?” 

“It’s serious this time!” Kaede says.

“Long-term partner or girl you just met?”

Kaede deflates slightly. “Girl I just met.”

“Uh-huh.” He chuckles, putting his earbud back in, returning to stocking shelves. 

“You’re the one who traveled to some random country because it showed up as a random page on Wikipedia!” Kaede shouts. Rantaro just waves without looking back at her. 

“Aw, Kaede, don’t let his joking get you down. It’s just love at first sight with this girl!” Tsumugi says. “From the way you described it, she was plainly flirting with you.”

“I think she’s into girls, too, right? She has to be,” Kaede says. “Her nails were short.”

“Not to mention--” Tsumugi pushes her glasses up the bridge of her nose, trying to get them to catch the light and do the Anime Glasses Thing. She fails, but continues anyway. “You shared an _indirect kiss_.” 

“I know! And then she just left me with the thermos!” Kaede says. She knows plenty of anime tropes because of Tsumugi, which she repaid with piano trivia. “I’m going to see her again tonight, so we have to make sure we close on time!”

“Right! For true love!” 

Unfortunately, retail stores have a way of sensing your fear. 30 minutes before closing, a small stampede of customers enter the store. Kaede spots all the usual suspects: the old lady who wants to start a fight for no reason, the dude who’s “just looking” and stays an hour past closing, the hypochondriac always wearing a face mask who’s about to clog up the pharmacy with questions. 

They kick into high gear. Tsumugi had once been a hostess, so she has a way of sweet talking rude customers. Kaede isn’t sure what brought Tsumugi to this job instead, but she’s never asked. She’s more focused right now on cleaning up any last messes, helping Rantaro stock the last shelves, and getting ready to lock up. 

Just as she thinks they’re done, Rantaro points to a cart of returns to process and Kaede groans. _Flight of the Bumblebee_ plays in her head as she sorts the items like a madwoman. A strange skill transfer from being a pianist is that she can move her fingers faster than an industrial sewing machine. 

The overhead lights turn off one by one as if the night’s hectic concert were coming to a close. By the time Kaede’s finished an hour’s worth of work in 10 minutes, she wants to stand and bow before the audience that isn’t there. They all step outside and Tsumugi locks up. 

Kaede checks her phone. 22:22. 

_Make a wish._

Her wish is in the pounding of her feet, weaving through pedestrians on the crosswalk, rolling down her face in an ice cold sweat. She carries the thermos as if it were the holy grail. 

But wishes don’t come true, not that easily. The windows of 53rd Drug are dark by the time she arrives. The ‘closed’ sign hanging on the door strikes a deep chord of despair. Too late. 

“‘Scuse me, girly…” 

Her trained ears detect the slur in his words before the stench of alcohol on his breath hits her. The man is late 40’s, maybe 50’s-- an age where his daughter could have been in Kaede’s graduating class. 

“Can y’ tell me how to get to the nearest station?” he asks. He’s not so drunk that he needs to brace against the wall for support. If she runs, he could catch her. There’s a parked car right nearby. He could grab her and throw her in. “Just some simple directions…”

Maybe she’s being paranoid. Maybe it’s all okay. But when she takes a step back, she’s sure he takes another one forward. 

“Yeah, um…” She turns slightly to point. “Just head a few blocks up that way, and--” A hand clamps over her mouth. A beefy arm slams across her midsection, catching her like a mouse in a trap. The thermos clatters to the ground and rolls down the sidewalk. 

The hand muffles her scream. Her life flashes before her eyes. There’s just about as many piano recitals as she expected. For some reason, one thought keeps blaring: _I won’t be able to give back the thermos._

She falls to the ground and takes a gasp of air. The hand and the heavy arm are gone. She rolls over, scooting back on her butt. The man lies on his stomach, eye-level with her, quivering under Maki’s shoe. 

“I’m giving you only one chance.” Her voice bleeds with malice. She leans down. Kaede sees her eyes widen in the reflection of Maki’s knife. “If I see you here again, I won’t be so forgiving.” 

“I- I’m sorry! Please let me go!” 

She considers the man’s plea. Her eyes raise to meet Kaede’s. A chill runs down Kaede’s spine. She’s had ‘knight in shining armor’ fantasies; what girl hasn’t dreamed of a majestic hero saving her? 

In this case, she’s not sure she’s any safer than she was before. 

“Go straight home. Don’t harass any other girls.” Maki steps off of the man. He scrambles to his feet and sprints away. 

The dark aura emanating from Maki subsides. She slips her knife away and holds a hand out. 

Kaede blinks. She reaches for the thermos, grabs it, and puts it in Maki’s outstretched hand.

Maki rolls her eyes. “I was trying to help you up.”

“O-oh! Right!” 

She allows herself to be helped to her feet. She’s not sure what to say. Maki speaks for her. “You should carry something for self-defense. And go straight home next time. Perverts try to take advantage of the dark.” 

“Is that all you have to say?” Kaede isn’t sure about the logistics of talking sternly to someone who could absolutely kill her in an instant, but she’s doing it. “I came to see you. I wanted to give this back and walk with you to the train.” 

“I waited. You didn’t come. So I left.” 

“Well, it’s not like we can just leave when it’s closing time!” Kaede says. She sighs, calming herself back down. She’s too on edge from the attack. “Besides, you’re here now. We can walk together after all!” 

“I’ll just give you a spare pocket knife. It’ll provide suitable defense so you can walk alone.”

“I don’t want a knife. I want you.” 

Maki’s mouth forms a perfect O shape. She turns away from Kaede, tugging on her twintails. Kaede spied her face heating up before she hid it. 

“You’re an idiot.” 

“And you’re walking with an idiot.” 

Kaede’s heart hasn’t stopped racing. Maybe she’s just drunk with adrenaline, or maybe rude and potentially murderous girls are just really hot. 

“Why did you come back?” Kaede asks. 

“Hm?”

“You heard me. You said I didn’t show up, so you left. But you still saved me.” 

Maki’s lips purse. How far is too far? Kaede wonders how it would feel for Maki to pin her down like that. She quickly brushes that thought aside, saving it for later. 

“I wanted my thermos back. It’s my only one.” 

“Uh-huh.” 

It’s a humid night. Kaede wipes sweat from her brow as they walk toward the station. It’s nearly a run, trying to keep up with Maki, but the other girl seems barely affected. 

“How did you learn how to fight like that?” Kaede asks. 

“Practice.” 

“Okay. You’re clearly not going to open up much willingly, so we’re going to play a game.” Kaede pauses meaningfully. Maki eyes her, interested. “I’m going to make some guesses, and all you say is yes or no.” 

“You’re free to try.” 

Kaede hums. This girl’s tune is harder to figure out than she thought. She had moved silently and tossed a grown man to the ground without effort. But if she were some kind of martial artist, then why the vicious-looking knife?

“You’ve stopped a lot of perverts and creeps,” Kaede guesses. A softball question.

“Yes.” 

“You’ve fought against people deadlier than that.”

“Yes.” 

Kaede’s hands ball into fists. Her knuckles turn white. 

“You were trained to fight by someone.”

“... Yes.” Maki gives a tight smile, oddly amused. It’s like she’s a cat and Kaede’s a mouse. It’s like she’s daring her. 

Kaede never backs down from a challenge. 

“You’re more than just a 53rd Drug employee.”

“Who’s to say?”

“You broke the rules. Answer the last one properly. Yes or no?”

Maki shrugs. “Yes. But aren’t you more than just a HPA Drug employee?”

“I mean… I just play piano.” 

“That’s more than me.” 

They pass a large store window. Maki turns her head to stare at her own reflection. She doesn’t check for imperfections on her face, or smile to check her teeth, or try to fix her hair, or something that would suggest she recognizes herself at all. 

Kaede hears the complaints before they see the crowd outside the station. Workers stand in front of the entrance, bowed at 90 degree angles to apologize. There’s been a train line closure due to an accident. 

“Really?! That was the only line that took me back to my place!” Kaede huffs. 

“How unfortunate for you.” 

“Mugi has an opposite route now…” Kaede shifts her weight on her feet. “I could find a hotel for the night, but I don’t really have the money for it.” 

“You need somewhere to stay.” Maki gives a wry smile. “You aren’t exactly subtle.” 

“Where could I go? Maybe I could use my spare store key to let me back into HPA so I can sleep behind the counter…” 

She rolls her eyes, hard. “I take the blue line. We can get on from the other station. Just… don’t judge me.”

Kaede jumps in the air. “Thank you, Maki!” she sings. “How could I judge? I never would judge a cute girl’s room.”

(Okay, except Mugi’s. If Kaede ever sees cup ramen again, she’ll vomit.)

Soon, they’re on the magnet train. The city lights mix into a blur. Maki is silent, but Kaede’s practically dancing in her seat. It feels like they’re running away together. Maybe she’s just delirious from the last bits of panic and exhaustion. She only met this girl today, after all.

But she looks over at Maki. What could she be hiding? Kaede refuses to leave when their song together has just started. She could be getting into something dangerous, but after years of being straight laced- piano, sleep, study, piano, sleep, repeat- it’s time for a little fun. 

Maki brushes Kaede’s bangs out of her eyes. She tries to pat down the persistent strand that always sticks up, but it refuses. Her fingers are cold. Kaede shivers. 

Kaede glances at Maki’s twintails as if for permission. Maki gives the slightest nod, and that’s all the permission Kaede needs to trace her fingers through it. She hopes Maki doesn’t notice her hands trembling. 

“Your face is awfully red,” Maki says, as if amused. 

“It is?” Kaede says. She puts her free hand to her cheek. Burning. “Ah-- it’s just…”

“It’s fine. I’m used to it. Kids always want to play with my hair.” 

“Do you take care of them often?” Kaede isn’t sure how she feels being compared to a kid, but petting her silky hair is too good to pass up. 

“Used to, before I was too old to be adopted.” Maki twirls a strand of hair around her finger.

“Do you miss them?” 

A pause. “Not really. I come home to less noise and mess, at least.” 

Kaede imagines Maki at 15, working desperately at 53rd Drug without any family to support her. Suddenly, she feels very privileged for just being a slightly displaced college grad. 

“I’m sorry, Maki.” 

“You have nothing to apologize for. This is just the way it is.” 

“But it doesn’t have to be!” Kaede insists. “You always have your friends. You have me!” 

“Friends.” 

“And you can’t say that we aren’t friends!”

“It’s been a fraction of a day.” 

“But what a day it’s been, right?” Kaede grins widely. “I’m glad I met you.” 

Kaede puts her hand on the seat between them. Maki looks away. But a moment later, her cold hand rests atop hers. Kaede is determined to warm it up. 

* * *

Maki stops before the door and faces Kaede. “Before you come in to my apartment, you need to wait outside.” 

“I don’t care if it’s messy.” 

“No, it’s different. Stay here.” 

Maki slips in and closes the door behind her. Kaede doesn’t see any lights turn on from inside. She presses her ear to the door. Maki must be cleaning, right? 

Kaede wouldn’t even know that Maki's still inside her apartment if it weren’t for the clinking of metal. She walks as silently as a ghost. It sounds like a whole lot of silverware being locked inside a drawer. 

The absence of sound must mean Maki is done. Kaede tries to look preoccupied in the hallway. She tries to find some type of pattern in the beige walls, the old wooden flooring. If Maki hadn’t said she lived here, Kaede would have passed this building by as part of the scenery. 

“Come in. And don’t snoop around.” 

“I would never.” Kaede can practically feel the halo beaming above her head. Maki just squints. 

Once she’s inside, though, Kaede has no idea what in the world Maki needed to hide. The same type of dusty wood floor stretches from wall to wall, uninterrupted by decorations or furniture. The linoleum of the kitchen seems like an oasis, but upon closer inspection, all Kaede sees is a table with one chair and a refrigerator that’s older than both of them combined. 

“Before you ask, I don’t spend much time here,” Maki says, tugging at a twintail. “I’m always at work.” 

“Ah, yeah…” Kaede can’t pretend like she lives in luxury. Her most prized possession is the grand piano that her family bought for her, brought in by movers. But she still has knickknacks she’s collected over the years, trophies from contests, framed photos of friends. 

She had promised not to judge, and the guilt of immediately breaking that promise sets in. She doesn’t look down on Maki, though, not by any stretch of the imagination. Her heart aches for her. 

A part of Kaede had wondered if she was just so charming and beautiful that Maki had no choice but to keep stringing her on. Maybe there’s slightly more desperation and loneliness behind Maki’s reasoning. The girl is still standing in the middle of her bare apartment. 

“Thank you again for having me over.” Kaede bows. “Can I play you some music?” 

“With what?” 

“I told you that I have a piano app on my phone!” Kaede says. “It’s not as good as the real thing, but I think you could use a song.” 

“Do what you will.” 

Maki opens a closet and finds two cushions to sit on. She places them closer than Kaede would have expected. Kaede doesn’t pass up the chance to scooch it even closer as she pulls up the piano app. 

“Alright, here we go!” 

It’s always a little awkward to play on the small touchscreen, but Kaede manages to start a good rendition of _Frühlingsglaube_. The sound quality isn’t quite as authentic as it could be on a real piano. It’s interrupted with the building settling and neighbors stomping. Maki listens, enraptured, all the same. 

There’s not much Kaede can do to fill up Maki’s apartment. She could take her thrifting for some good finds, but with what money? There are two things she can provide, though: herself, and music. Music decorates time like paint to a canvas. If Maki remembers her song sometimes when she walks in this empty room, it should feel less empty, and that’s all Kaede can hope for. 

Whenever Kaede plays piano, she slips into another world. She’s not sure what she expects when she finishes the piece and turns to Maki. She’ll probably seem bored or make a sardonic remark. 

Tears are running down Maki’s cheeks. 

Kaede nearly drops her phone. “Maki?! Are you okay?”

Maki raises her hands to her cheeks. She frowns when they come back wet from her tears. She quickly stands and walks to the kitchen. She rubs her face hard on a clean dishcloth and then sighs into it, refusing to look at Kaede. 

“If my music moved you, that’s an honor,” Kaede says. “It’s okay to cry--”

“I haven’t cried since I was a child.” Maki’s words are very matter-of-fact and piercing. It’s like she’s trying to distance herself from, well, herself. “There’s no point in it. It’s not going to make anything better. So why did I…”

Kaede rises from her pillow and walks over to Maki. Gently, she lowers the dishcloth. Maki’s face is red. 

“Music can trigger all sorts of feelings, even ones that were buried really deep down. That’s what I love about it. So many pieces are tied to strong feelings for me, and now… this one will be special because I shared it with you.” 

Maki doesn’t say anything. She’s still tugging at her hair, angry and upset. But this is a different type of anger from her murderous rage against the pervert-- she seems so young, so fragile, that Kaede just wants to scoop her up into her arms and keep her safe.

One thing is for sure, and it’s that Maki isn’t about to ask for more. Wordlessly, Kaede sits back on the cushion, pulls up her phone, and begins to play.

This time, when Maki sits next to her, she leans against Kaede. 

* * *

The bedroom is just as bare-bones as the rest of the apartment: just a futon and a tatami mat. 

Just as Kaede hears Tsumugi’s disembodied voice screaming out _there was only one beeeeeddddd_ from somewhere, Maki pulls an extra futon from the closet. “I have a spare. Here.” 

Without a second thought, Kaede lays it next to Maki’s. “Thanks! I’m probably going to have to sleep in these clothes, though…” She’s been wearing her work uniform for far longer than she’s used to. 

Maki’s eyes flicker. “Some spare clothes might fit you. Hold on.” 

After some digging, Maki produces some old clothes that are a size or two larger than her. They smell strongly like closet. Kaede examines the Doraemon t-shirt while Maki squirms.

“If you don’t want to wear it, I don’t care,” Maki says.

“Thank you! Were these really yours? I don’t think it seems like your size, or… style.” 

(Then again, Kaede doesn’t know Maki’s style. She hopes to see her in casual clothes someday.) 

“They were a friend’s. She left them here. Go put them on before I change my mind.” 

Kaede walks into the bathroom to change. She looks at herself in the mirror. Is she really about to stay the night at this strange, potentially murderous, girl’s place? She did tell Mugi that she was going to move in with her, but she had been half-joking. Mostly half-joking. 

Maki’s abrasive. Cold. Distant. She saved Kaede’s life. But she had confirmed too that she was trained to fight, and she’s fought others before. Kaede had been too afraid to ask if she had killed. 

She’s afraid of Maki, true-- but she cares for her. Nobody who’s moved by music can be a soulless person. 

When Kaede emerges from the bathroom, Maki has changed into a large t-shirt and shorts. She’s spartan about her bedtime routine. After brushing, she lies down immediately on the futon and closes her eyes. No music, no scrolling through social media, not even a goodnight. 

What had Kaede been expecting? For Maki to lie down and wait for Kaede to snuggle her? To say “come to bed, dear,” like they’re a married couple? Maki only saved Kaede because she took pity on her. For that same reason, she invited Kaede into her apartment. They’re just friends. And when Kaede leaves for work tomorrow morning, she’s not sure Maki will ever talk to her again. 

All the more reasons to savor the moment as much as she can. She lies down on the futon next to Maki, oh-so-subtly scooting closer. If Maki notices, she doesn’t say a word. 

She looks so small in the empty bedroom, so alone. Maki’s skin shines in the moonlight. She starts off sleeping on her back, but as the minutes melt into hours, she tosses and turns until she winds up in the fetal position, hugging her knees close to her chest. Kaede wonders what she’s dreaming about. 

Maki, who owns nothing, but had kept a friend’s spare clothes. Had she planned to return them? The clothes had been in storage too long for that. Maybe they were a memento. Kaede doubts that Maki saved the clothes for a situation like this. What had this ‘friend’ meant to her? And how badly had losing her affected Maki’s life?

If any song could capture the moment, it would be _Clair de Lune_. It’s a calm song that puts her at peace, one that’s often viewed as both romantic and melancholy. She watches Maki’s chest rise and fall with her breath. 

If Maki said she never wanted to see her again after this, would Kaede just be able to forget about this whirlwind of a day? Could she just walk away? Every time she played _Frühlingsglaube_ , Maki’s memory would haunt her. 

Maki tosses and turns in her sleep. 

Warmth pools in her chest. Slowly, knowing the full risks of how Maki might react if she woke up startled, Kaede reaches out. She wraps an arm around Maki. Her chest presses against Maki’s back. She’s still freezing cold. 

Safe in Kaede’s embrace, Maki’s restless sleep calms. The tension drains from her body. Soon, the only sounds in the bedroom are their slow breaths. 

**Author's Note:**

> please let me know if you want me to write more of this ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯


End file.
